The Challenge
by CoverofThunder
Summary: Mina, with nothing to do after class one day, accidentally overhears a meeting between Kirishima and the guys of her class. She finds out he's issuing a 'Challenge of Manliness' and even Midoriya is in on it! What could the challenge possibly be?


Mina was bored.

Bored out of her skull. There wasn't a damn thing to do in the dorms today, and it was driving her insane. It had already been a fairly slow day, the classes that they had been in were some of the most mind-numbing ones that she'd had to suffer through since joining Yuuei, and no one seemed to have any particular energy about them.

Come to think of it, barely anyone was noticeable at all.

Walking through the dorm halls, Mina wondered where everyone could possibly be. The hour wasn't late enough for anyone to even begin thinking about prepping for bed, but it also late enough to where they'd all just finished dinner.

So where the hell was everyone?

Mina herself was a social person, always making sure to be in the know about what was going on. Not that she was a gossip or anything like that, but she did maintain a good relationship with most of the people in her class, so she usually knew what was going on.

"Where the hell did those guys even run off to?..." Mina muttered under her breath to the seemingly empty building. Everyone normally ate a communal dinner in one of the common dining areas. After eating they'd chat for a bit until eventually getting tired and turning in for the night.

Now however, right after dinner all of the guys just washed everything quickly and left. Mina originally stayed with some of the girls, but with none of the guys pulling antics on each other it just felt dry. Boring almost. There was only so much casual chit-chat she could take before she needed something else to do, or to amuse her. So she left.

She'd run into Mineta a few minutes prior but he'd been sweating bullets, muttering something about getting men's underwear… Which frankly, freaked her out a bit. Mina guessed even guys had preferences for their brand of undergarments, and didn't think about it any further than that. Dealing with him on a good day was bad enough.

Approaching Kirishima's room she heard low speaking, as if trying to keep the words from being heard outside. "...ose are the rules of the challenge for all you latecomers. We start first thing tomorrow."

It sounded like Kirishima's voice, but was slightly lower in volume than usual. Mina made her way up to the door quickly and quietly, wanting to listen in on whatever was important enough to get rid of all the guys. She was tempted to just walk right in and uncover what the heck was going on, but she couldn't just barge right in. Was listening in any better? That felt like she was just invading their privacy.

Still, curiosity bested her. Standing outside the door Mina leaned in and was certain she'd be be able to hear everything they said. "Does everyone have their challenge?" Curiosity peaked, she made sure to pay attention even further, their voices still slightly muffled through the closed door.

"I have to… Actually pay attention in class for the next two days..." Kaminari this time, sounding depressed at his 'challenge'. Whether or not this challenge was by choice or force she hadn't figured out yet. If she knew him, probably force.

"And we're gonna test you on it too, so don't try to just fake it."

"Aw, crap."

"I can't wear my mask tomorrow and have to style my hair differently." While interesting, Shoji's wasn't too difficult of a challenge -at least she thought so- but the multi-armed user might see it differently.

"Okay, and I've got to be as demotivating as possible for the next two days so it's not like I won't be doing anything."

"The rest of you good as well?" Several seconds of silence followed for what she assumed must be everyone nodding. "Good, then all we've got left is you Midoriya."

Midoriya was in there too? From what Mina had gathered, everyone was doing some sort of dare game. Kirishima and Kaminari, she could understand. Shoji was a bit of a wobble, but she could still see it.

But Midoriya? He was shy as hell. How had they even managed to convince him to take part in this? That was like trying to convince a shark to walk on land. And there he was. Apparently.

There was a large amount of rustling papers and notes. Mina wasn't surprised by that at least. Even when it came to challenges between guys, he had to think about everything. "Who's it

going to be? Everyone here voted for Uraraka." Now this was where it got interesting for her. What exactly did Midoriya have to do?

"I-I already told you guys I can't. It's not like that, we talked about it already." Midoriya was more resolute than normal, though he'd been getting more and more confident in himself as of late. Was that why he was even taking part in this game? Or had he just been dragged into this before he'd even managed to say no?

"Okay then, go on," Kirishima said, offering Midoriya a chance to explain himself. "I don't need convincing but everyone here at least wants to know why. It looks like you two have already been dating for a while to me!"

"No! It's not like that. Uraraka, she's like my best friend, but there isn't anything like that going on. I mean she's fun and hanging out with her is entertaining… But I just don't see anything like that happening." That was new, like Kirishima had said, even with the rest of the girls asking Uraraka, they'd also thought the two were an item. Hearing this now was intriguing. "S-so as far as your 'Challenges of Manliness' go Kirishima, no, I can't have mine be asking out Uraraka."

Mina paused at this revelation. She was actually pretty surprised at this entire revelation. She'd been convinced, completely convinced, that Midoriya and Uraraka were crushing on one another hard. Everything that she'd noticed had pointed towards that being the case, though here was Midoriya outright denying this.

If she hadn't been engrossed in what was being said in the room behind this door, she was now.

"Alright,then we go with our second challenge," Kirishima spoke, and with it, Mina heard the rustling of some more paper.

"Wait, we can just refuse these?!"

"Too late, Kaminari."

"Damn it…"

A few seconds passed without much sound while Kirishima looked through whatever the hell he'd picked up, presumably reading it to himself. "Lemme see… Okay, since you outright refused the first - "

"That's still bullshit, Midoriya."

"- All those for having him ask out Ashido instead raise your hand." Mina froze, blinking for a second and wanting to make sure that she'd just heard that right. She had to cover her mouth before she vocally asked the red haired boy to repeat himself until she realized she wasn't supposed to be listening in on them. Seven seconds passed. "It's seven to three for so your

challenge is now just asking out Ashido."

A number of questions suddenly entered Mina's head - The first and foremost being why the hell her name had been chosen for this.

Midoriya sighed heavily in resignation. "Why do you all want me to ask someone out so badly, anyway? It's not like she'll even say yes. It's doomed from the start to turn out badly." He was talking differently to how he normally did. More irritable, if she had to describe it. Then again, in his situation, she probably would be as well.

Part of her felt like she should leave right now… But again, her own curiosity was besting her.

Kirishima laughed. "That's the point Midoriya, you're _supposed_ to get turned down. We're doing this because you've never even asked out a girl before."

"Then why Ashido?" Mina's thoughts exactly.

"That's easy. After Uraraka, she's the nicest girl in our class. When she turns you down, it'll at least be gently."

"You don't think much of me, do you?"

There was a part of Mina that wanted to open the door and ask how Kirishima was so sure she'd say no. While… Okay, sure, she hadn't really noticed Midoriya at first with how plain he was. She refused to believe that no one else in her class had thought the exact same way though. He was shy, he looked plain as paper, his only real unique feature being his bizarre Quirk, and it's ridiculous habit of breaking his own bones.

After the tournament, though, now that was a different story.

She'd seen how far he was willing to push himself to achieve and surpass everyone around him, but also how he wanted to help others like Todoroki. And after that, he began to develop at a rate that put everyone else in the class to absolute shame. Overcoming his biggest weakness after just a week away from the group during the workplace experience, to beating freakin' _All_

 _Might_ during their end of semester tests, and going out of his way to save Bakugou from those Villains…

He'd gone from barely visible to the most apparent person in the entire school.

So it was fair to say that she may have had a slight 'thing' for her curly haired classmate since then. It was hard not to. Really hard not to. The more she thought about it, the more she was convinced that it was impossible for someone not to have a thing for him. The fact of the matter was that everything he did seemed to amaze her in some way, and it was near impossible to just ignore someone like that. Though, as outgoing as Mina was, she'd never acted on it out of respect for his relationship.

Well, supposed relationship.

Now though, with what Midoriya just said, it changed things. If that were the case… then she might just be tempted to see how things played out. That all depended on his answer though.

"A-Alright, I'll do it, but don't expect anything good!" He was clearly embarrassed, but still, it caused Mina to gasp every so lightly that he'd actually go along with Kirishima's absurd

'Manliness' challenge. Mina began thinking of the different ways this could play out.

Though first, she needed to get out of here.

Kirishima spoke up just as she was wandering off. "Mineta already has to take one piece of underwear from each of Class 1-B's dorms so it can't be worse than his situation." Laughter erupted from the room as parties thought to what the purple headed teen had to have been up to at that moment. Even Midoriya managed to find a sense of humor from that now clear, and hilariously ironic situation.

Taking the noise as her queue Mina stealthily made her way away from the door and, once at a good distance, made a beeline straight across the floor into her own room.

She had a lot of thinking to do tonight.

* * *

Izuku's night had been grueling and unsatisfying, lacking in the proper sleep that he so desperately needed. His mind was filled with thoughts of the following day and what obstacles it could possibly bring, in forms of both his class and Kirishima's challenge. His morning was just as arduous, with less sleep than desired he'd forgotten to eat breakfast, denying himself a meal he seriously needed and which would've probably helped his cognitive functions.

Absently, he wandered from the dorms towards his homeroom, the time until class began fast approaching. He walked slowly, those passing him thinking he was more of an echo of himself rather than the actual Midoriya they knew. Most would attribute it purely to a lack of sleep, though they didn't know the full reason why this was the case. This was only his outward appearance.

Inside, Izuku knew that he lacked the necessary rest and nutrition he required. He also resolved to - Unfortunately- be the first to complete his challenge. His biggest task today wasn't the classes he was dreading ahead of him, but that same challenge he'd begrudgingly accepted the night prior.

Before Izuku knew it, he'd already made it inside and had taken his seat. As homeroom began, he was unable to focus on his work, due in part to one pink classmate on the opposite side of the room. It wasn't so much her herself that was causing his lack of focus as it was what he knew that he had to ask her later in the day. All he needed to do was make to the end of the day and ask her.

As the classes wore on he'd glance over towards Ashido, wondering what she'd think of him if she knew why he'd be asking her out. Would she laugh, finding him actually taking part in the challenge funny? Or would she be angry, finding him asking her only because of the same challenge demeaning?

Currently as it stood, Izuku hadn't been _completely_ honest with Kirishima. He didn't think the challenge was all bad. If he was being honest with himself right now -And he was-, he wouldn't say that he nervous from the fact that he had to ask Ashido out, but from the fact that he was hoping she'd say yes. While most would think he wouldn't be anywhere near attracted to the hyperactive girl, it was endearing to him, seeing someone so easily able to bring others together. Her skills and strength were also a great deal above average, showing that she had dedication to becoming a hero, something he could greatly respect. While they hadn't interacted much in their time at U.A. Izuku had gained a deep respect for Ashido as both a classmate and a potential hero. He wasn't at all opposed to the idea of a relationship, but to begin or end because of a _dare_? That's what made him especially nervous.

Looking over once again, Izuku noticed she was staring back at him as well. For a moment, the two just looked at one another, not really doing much, or conveying any emotion at all. After a few seconds, she smiled and waved at him, causing his face to rapidly heat up. Not knowing what he should do now that he was caught, instinct took over, and he looked away pretending to pay attention.

The brief exchange had made him slightly uncomfortable for the rest of the session. A coincidence of course, but its timing did nothing to help calm his nerves.

Later during Modern Literature, against his better judgement, he decided to look again. Ashido was _still_ looking at him and, seeing that he was looking again, smiled even brighter this time.

She even went so far as to turn slightly towards him, as if she was about to stand up and walk over. Izuku immediately bolted his eyes towards the front.

This time, it didn't feel like a coincidence.

Ishiyama - Better known as Cementoss- Caught her turned away from the front. "Ashido, is there something I should know about, since you seem to deem it more important than your classes?"

Without missing a beat the pink girl turned to their teacher and cheerfully replied. "No sir!"

"Good, then how about you tell us about the about the origins of Modern Literature as we know it. That _is_ the content of today's lesson after all." While his face didn't leave much room for a variety of emotion, those who knew him well would be able to tell Ishiyama was looking somewhat smug after his remark.

"Uh…" Turning back towards the front with all eyes on her, Ashido could only mutter under her breath. "Damnit."

The class ended less than twenty minutes later to Izuku's relief. That forward display of _something_ from Ashido left him nervous about what she knew, and anxious to get out of the classroom for lunch.

Quickly packing things away for the lunch rush he joined Iida and Uraraka as they walked out, heading towards the cafeteria. While the lunch rush was underway, he could use it to relax a little from the day's events so far.

They chatted idly while they waited in line, being sure to pay attention when their turns came around. Iida noticed Izuku's lack of focus when picking his meals. Curious and concerned, he decided to bring up earlier events from class.

"Midoriya, earlier when Ishiyama got on Ashido's case for not paying attention, she was looking in your direction. Do you know what that was about?" It helped that the class president sat near the back of the class, this allowed him to observe nearly everyone unimpeded.

Izuku coughed abruptly, now snapped out of his stupor. "O-Oh? I-I hadn't noticed. Why would you think she was looking towards me?" His voice was strained with hope that the class president would buy the lie even if he didn't like doing it. Finishing up with getting their respective meals the three person group made it's way over to one of the many tables housed by U.A.'s spacious dining area.

"I ask because you've been taking peeks over there constantly throughout class," Unfortunately, he didn't. "Now, I don't care what you do during class as long as it doesn't others." The moment after Iida stated this he felt the need to clarify. "You're one of the best students in the class but if you could please refrain from distractions, it would be appreciated." Iida had enough trouble keeping Kaminari and company in check. Though Kaminari himself was strangely not a problem today, he'd been dutifully paying attention for the entirety of the first half of the day. Finding a sizable table, the group sat down. Iida made sure to get his attention once they were seated. "But if you need anything, I'm here... Alright?" Even as Class President, Midoriya was still his friend and he offered his assistance as such.

"And I am too, ok?" Uraraka piped up. "If you need us we're both here for you, no matter what!" She hoped that he would understand that he could rely on them, knowing that he could be hard-headed at times. She'd been noticing his less than stellar focus lately and that his performance was beginning to suffer.

Izuku knew that his taller friend, while brash right now, still had his duties as a class president. It was good knowing that he would still be there for him even with his recent behavior. With everything going on lately his grades had been on a downward trend. Iida of course, would be knowledgeable about this and more than likely knew something was wrong. While he could keep from getting on his case for so long, eventually Iida would need to talk to him personally. "I haven't been in the best of spots right now, and if something comes up I'll come to you first… I swear," Izuku added something to the end of his statement to Iida. "But for right now, it's something I need to do on my own."

Iida's face relaxed a bit at Izuku's pledge, knowing the teen wasn't one to state them lightly.

Uraraka seemingly unfazed at this, meant to get another word in but...

"There you are! I barely saw you before you sat down!" Ashido Mina had decided to join them. "You know how hard it was to focus today, Midori? You've been distracting me all day!"

Setting her tray down she sat directly next to Izuku, scooting _far_ too close for comfort and making him blush enough to shame a tomato in the process. He didn't even get a second to process what she meant by that. He looked over to Iida for assistance but only received a confused look in return, the other boy not exactly knowing what was going on between them that was causing this. While everyone was still wondering about her sudden arrival, she began eating quickly, her speed matching perfectly with her hyper attitude.

With no one talking she stopped for a moment Ashido decided to continue on. "So anyways, what do you guys think about today's classes? Boring right!" She lightly nudged Izuku while facing the other two, Uraraka watching her oddly as she did so. "Midori here probably doesn't even need to pay attention! Isn't that right Midori?" She looked at Izuku to see him frozen stiff, face still red from her closeness.

Izuku didn't know what was suddenly wrong with Ashido today. She was being far too forward and casual with him suddenly, even with her personality being as outgoing as it was. That, and combined with his nerves for his incoming dare… He needed to get away from here, fast.

"S-Sorry everyone I j-just remembered something I n-needed to do." He shoveled as much food as he could into his mouth, scarfing down about three quarters of his meal in about thirty seconds. The entire time he didn't look at any of the other three present, choosing instead focus on the meal in front of him. Ignoring his burned tongue and cheeks Izuku wiped his face with a napkin and stood up. "I'll see you guys in class, bye!" Picking up his tray he jogged over to the exit and dropped it off, leaving the other three in awkward silence.

About five seconds after, Ashido spoke up once again, startling the two usuals of the group. "Well, since that turned out be a bust, I think I'll get going myself." She made to get up when a hand was placed her her shoulder, making her pause. She followed the limb down to its owner and saw Iida staring intently at her. Even under these circumstances she grew ever so slightly nervous. Ashido smiled awkwardly, even for her. "What is it Iida? Need something?"

"I do Ashido. I need answers." Iida paused, taking a moment to find the right words. "I want to know why Midoriya's like this, and what you have to do with it."

Ashido looked away for a brief second, deciding on a particular response. "Are you sure? It's kind of... Odd." Either way, depending on his answer, she'd go through with her side of this situation.

"I'm sure," Iida replied quickly, sure that whatever Ashido was doing was done with no ill intentions.

"I'm ready for it." Uraraka was also prepared.

Ashido sighed, more to herself than those around her regaining her smile after a few seconds. "Alright! Here's why I've been messing with Midori…" Both Iida and Uraraka leaned in closer, not wanting to allow anyone else to hear what Ashido had to say.

* * *

Izuku spent the rest of his lunch mindlessly wandering about the many hallways of U.A., to him anything was better than returning to the cafeteria where Ashido would surely be waiting. He knew if that if he went back he'd be subject to more of her teasing. His heart was already pounding and he wasn't sure he'd be able to be to handle much more before bursting into flames.

He'd been thinking about her sudden change in attitude towards him today when the class bell rang, and as if on cue, it struck within him a singular thought. With everything that she'd been doing to him all day, she must've had a purpose to it. All of her teasing, all of her staring during class, and even her turning to him as if going to greet him. He didn't want to admit it but there was only one possible reason she'd be acting this way.

Somehow, someway, she knew.

Izuku's heart stopped for a brief moment, a mix of anxiety and an odd sense of gratitude running through him. The fact that her sudden interest in teasing him wasn't spontaneous also brought him some measure of relief and fear. Why, if she knew of the challenge, did she decide to tease him now because of it? Did she have some sort of plan in action? Did she have feelings for him as well? Were these supposed feelings pushing her to feel the need distract him? His pulse quickened the teen feeling happy and anxious at the possibility of having his own feelings reciprocated.

With these thoughts in mind he hurried back, not wanting to face Ashido any more than he had to, now more than ever. He knew that she'd subject him to even more of her antics towards him in some way or another. It could be through her sitting too close for comfort or just smiling that far-too-friendly smile, either way he couldn't put up with it much more before he'd likely spontaneously combust from embarrassment. All of the thoughts of what she could do were piling up and making it difficult to think about how he'd deal with the challenge when the time came.

Luckily, he was the first one back to the classroom this time around. Normally, he'd be around the middle of the pack in terms of arriving and would greet everyone appropriately as he came in. Right now he didn't want to risk having to greet anyone in this state. He'd returned soon enough that not even their teacher had arrived. Sitting at his desk he made sure to keep his head down and start reading his next class' book.

His classmates came in quickly, some greeting him, but most others choosing not to. He fully expected Ashido to pull something here even though her seat was far closer to the entrance than his, but hoped that she wouldn't. His hope was in good faith, with Ashido deciding to go straight to her seat instead of crossing the room to greet him. The bell rang and the second half of the day's classes began.

Unfortunately for Izuku, while Ashido hadn't decided on greeting him when she came in, he could still feel her watching him. As much as he tried to ignore the feeling, Izuku couldn't help but look over to where Ashido was sitting, with her smiling back at him every time, seemingly never looking away. Each time she did this, Izuku would always pretend to look away at something more important, sometimes to the front, or to another person. Eventually he resigned to the fact that she would continue to do this for the rest of the day, and tried his best on how to ask her once class ended. All of these things prevented him from fully focusing for the rest of class.

The rest of the day passed quickly, Izuku still taking glances back over to Ashido just to be sure he wasn't imagining things, and that this was truly how the day's events were turning out, with her actually being forward enough to tease him incessantly throughout the first half of their classes. More and more he thought to how this would end. She was smiling… So, did that mean it was a good thing? Or was it more of a hidden intention just waiting to call him out for the challenge itself? Ashido could've also been making sure he was too distracted to think of anything else.

With no time to think of any possible plans she could have, the time of reckoning was now upon Izuku as the final bell rang, signalling the end of class. Everyone began packing up their books for the day, Izuku included. Even as he packed his things he could still feel her eyes watching him, waiting for him to finally complete his challenge.

In a moment of bravery he swallowed his anxiety and walked over to where she waiting by her desk, his body beginning to sweat the closer he got. Kirishima, as well as the other guys in on the challenge, spotted this and made sure to watch how this played out. They were sure of the outcome, but not the delivery.

"H-Hey Ashido." Like it or not he had to at least lead into asking her. Izuku couldn't just jump right into it. He scratched the back of his head nervously, awaiting a response.

Ashido smiled brightly. "Hey yourself!" Her face adopted a look of confusion. "Do you need something Midori?"

Izuku couldn't tell whether or not she was being genuine or faking it but he had to roll with it anyways. "W-well, a-actually I wanted to ask you a q-question." Out of anxiety or a lack of will Izuku didn't know, but he tried hiding his face in his arms.

"Oh?" Ashido's interest was 'peaked' now. "What is it then?"

Removing his arms from around his face he looked at Ashido. "S-so I was w-w-wondering, do you w-want t-to-" Izuku took a moment to swallow from how tight his throat was.

"Do I want to go out with you to dinner tonight? Sure Midori!" Ashido had made sure to raise her voice enough so that even Kirishima could hear her response, a sly grin left on her face from what she'd done. Everything stopped, no one made noise, no one moved, the only two who knew what was going being Iida and Uraraka, both quietly smiling to themselves, if a little surprised that Izuku had actually gone through with it all. "Mind if I pick where?" Ashido grinned gleefully. Her plan had turned out far better than expected, with everything coming together nicely. Izuku probably felt rushed now and would feel inclined to accept her offer.

Izuku looked around the room and everyone was staring, even Kirishima was slack-jawed. After seeing the reactions Ashido's outburst had garnered he looked back to the pink-haired girl and meekly replied. "O-Ok." With his fate sealed to her he grew ever more nervous, everything happening too quickly for him to react appropriately. He'd probably be as red as a tomato right now if it wasn't for how quickly everything was currently happening.

"Great! I know the perfect place, let's get going already!" Mina grabbed her pack, reached out, and wrapped her arm around Izuku's, making him blush and have his face feel like fire. He suddenly noticed that Mina had leaned in to tell him something. "For the record Midori, I did know." Leaning back out she smiled brightly as if it was just the two of them.

Izuku anxiously looked at Kirishima. "I-I guess that means I win?" He got no response from the red haired teen, who just had his eyes wide open from shock.

Not a moment after speaking Mina pulled him out the door and down the hall, no doubt towards their restaurant date's location. Swallowing in both happiness from the outcome and the smallest bit of fear he wondered...

"W-Wait, why did you agree to this even though you already knew about the challenge?" As nervous as Izuku was right now, his curiosity bested it, prompting him to ask. If she'd known then why hadn't she come to him first. It was certainly more fitting for her personality to do something like that.

Ashido -still pulling on him- shrugged. "I wanted to see how much I could get away with." She looked at him and her smile turned soft. "And I like seeing you blush like a tomato." Ashido laughed, a much softer lilt in her voice. Izuku's blush magnified several times to her satisfaction as she continued dragging him by his arm towards the exit.

Izuku thought to how this all started. Kirishima had approached him with his 'Challenge of Manliness' and had somehow convinced him to accept. Everything had somehow come together unexpectedly and Ashido, even with knowing that he'd been challenged to ask her out, still accepted. As far as he was concerned through his anxiety, this was one of the singular best moments of his life right now. He wasn't sure where their relationship would end up, nor was he confident in being able to know what she was thinking about where they'd be as well, but one thing was for certain, he was glad that he'd accepted the challenge. Izuku looked over at Ashido as she pulled him, and he was glad she knew.

* * *

 **Just felt like putting out something like this. I don't really know if I'll be making more of these, it really just depends on how good any of my future ideas are.**


End file.
